Continuing Education Opportunities for Grant Pros

When I was a student, I always loved preparing to go back to school. Perhaps it comes as no surprise to folks who know me well that I have always loved office supply stores. The smells! The organizing potential! The colorful pens! Back-to-school time meant getting my new calendar, color-coded notebooks, you name it.

As students around the country go back to school in the fall, here are some ways you can go “back to school” in the grants profession. Take a moment to make a list of the skills you would like to learn and see if any of these organizations can help you refine those skills with their continuing education resources.

Grant Professionals Association (GPA)

I recommend any grant professional (no matter your title) become a member of GPA. Their GrantSchool has regular webinar series with fantastic, actionable presentations on a variety of topics, available one at a time or certain topics through Learning Pathways. Members have access to much of the content for free, while nonmembers pay a small fee per class. Another option is to attend the annual conference, GrantSummit, which is available in person or virtually. I’m also a member of my state GPA chapter and have enjoyed the networking opportunities and resources available through their meetings.

GrantStation

GrantStation has a wide range of online education programs about all things grant writing, and they’ve recently started rolling out more webinars about the use of AI in the grant profession. Their TargetED series focuses on one specific topic at a time. I especially like that their President, Alice Ruhnke, leads many of the training sessions.

P.S. A member benefit of Grant Professionals Association is full membership access to GrantStation!

Instrumentl

Instrumentl’s training sessions are often led by practitioners and consultants, who can give real-world examples of tools and techniques they’ve deployed in their own organizations. If your organization has an Instrumentl membership but you’re overwhelmed by the options, these sessions can be helpful to walk you through how others use the system to manage their grant portfolios. Presenters usually have freebies to give away that can be helpful (who doesn’t love a good checklist?). 

P.S. If you’re interested in a free 14-day trial of Instrumentl, use my affiliate link (or code NOMAD50). We both get $50 off one month!

Foundant

Another great educator in the fundraising space, Foundant also works with a number of practitioners and consultants to lead their webinars. These cover many topics related to nonprofit fundraising and are available to filter by audience type and nonprofit organization type.

The Grantsmanship Center

The original grant trainer! They published their book Grantsmanship: Program Planning & Proposal Writing in 1972 (I have a copy!) and maintain a regular series of trainings about all aspects of the grant pipeline. You can also learn more about how funders approach grantmaking through their “Meet the Grantmakers-Online” series, where funders of all sizes from around the country discuss their priorities and systems.

Grant Professionals Certification Institute (GPCI)

GPCI administers the Grant Professional Certified (GPC) credential, which I earned in 2022. Part of the reason I decided to sit for the GPC exam is that I hoped to be introduced to the foundational concepts in the grant profession. And I absolutely was! Maintaining a GPC also requires that you complete ongoing professional development, so this is another way to stay up to date on the industry.

Candid

Not just focused on grants, Candid offers training on all aspects of nonprofit fundraising and each session notes the suggested skill level required. These sessions help grant pros get a basic understanding of a topic.

Other ideas

If you’ve identified a particular skill you’d like to learn more about (reading 990s, researching funders, etc.), use your favorite search engine or generative AI to suggest resources. There are also a number of grants consultants who offer training series and podcasts. I’m a complete nerd in that I also attend U.S. Census Bureau webinars (they have some specifically geared toward grant writers!). Your local community foundation and United Way might have in-person or virtual training, too. And don’t forget to ask other grant pros you know!

Who is your go-to training provider for grants continuing education?

Cover photo by Element5 Digital on Unsplash